50 Stats to Help You Choose The Right Social Networks for Your Brand

One of my favorite movie lines is, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” Ferris Bueller’s words have never been more applicable to the world of marketing than they are right now. The social landscape is changing quickly and in order to win, social marketers need to listen and engage where their audience is, rather than expecting audiences to come to them. The challenge is, there are more social channels than ever before.

In this blog, I’ll outline three ways to help you choose the right social networks for your business.

Get to Know Your Audience

I’m always surprised at how little time people take to really get to know their target audience. As you’re jumping into the tactical details of your social media plan, it’s critical that you take the time to understand who your ideal audience is and what they care about.

Here are some great questions to think about:

Who is your ideal audience following on social media?

What topics are they discussing/posting about?

How old are they?

What is their geographical location?

What type of content are they regularly interacting with?

Taking the time to thoroughly research your audience helps ensure your social media marketing efforts are as effective as possible. Understanding what channels will most likely reach your audience, the best time to gain their attention, the tone that will most likely resonate, and the types of content they prefer will help put you one step ahead of your competition.

Go Where They Are

One mistake I see marketers make all too often is trying to incorporate too many channels into their strategies. This can be a very time consuming and expensive endeavor that yields less than ideal results. Focus your efforts on the channels that your target audience prefers. For B2B, it can be challenging to determine whether the latest and greatest platforms are worth the investment. A great way to get started is by looking at usage and demographics for each of the platforms. Let data inform your decisions, for example, the 2016 Social Media Update, Pew Research took an in depth look at where adults are spending their time online.

It can be easy to think you need to be everywhere in order to build a social community, but the truth is, valuable time and resources are lost when you aren’t thoughtful and strategic about when and where you’ll maintain a social presence. Think about the old adage, “If a tree falls in the woods and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” The same goes for your social media presence. If you’re posting to a channel that none of your target audience is utilizing, are you making progress? Here are some stats to consider as you vet social media channels for your organization/brand:

Only 14% of brands are currently sharing ads on the platform. China Channel

A recent study published by Statista outlined the top social networking sites worldwide. I was surprised that I didn’t see the three channels I generally think of—Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn—when developing my social strategy. It was a good reminder that if you’re developing a global strategy, it’s important to research and consider all the social channels global audiences are utilizing. Take a look at Statista’s data below:

Whatever channels you choose to develop and nurture, be sure you are focused where your target audience is. If you’re looking to engage people in C-suite in fin-tech, Snapchat may not be your best bet. However, if you’re looking to connect with a millennial interested in fashion trends, Snapchat and Instagram will probably be the best channels to showcase your brand, grow your audience and drive revenue. Businesses that strive to engage with their audience in meaningful ways, on the channels they prefer, will ultimately win.

What social media channels have proved to be successful for you? How have you determined whether to market on a new social channel? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

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